Reviews for Maralinga

“An amazing tale – utterly gripping, it reads like a thriller”

Jon Faine, ABC Radio Melbourne

“The story reaches out and grabs you by the throat”

Historian Dr Clare Wright

“Frank Walker’s book will shock you, but you’ll also be enlightened. This book forces you to question our government and its role in what is described by one interviewed veteran as one of the greatest miscarriage of justice this country has ever seen.”

Good Reading Magazine, September 2014

“This book will contribute to a much greater awareness and perhaps much more action on this issue.”

Fran Kelly, ABC Radio National

“Walker demonstrates powerfully why, regardless of the context in which the testing took place, the emotional legacy of Maralinga will linger in the Australian psyche, just as do Gallipoli, Bodyline and Singapore. The cost in terms of damage to health, the environment and public trust in government will remain with us for generations to come.”

The Australian, 30 August 2014

“Walker, drawing on his own interviews with surviving servicemen and the evidence presented to the 1984 Royal Commission, has written an original and compelling account that succeeds in exposing the subterfuge and myopia of both British and Australian governments. The details he elicits from servicemen who witnessed the explosions give the narrative its power.”

The Saturday Paper, 13 September 2014

“Shocking revelations…”

Margaret Throsby, Midday Interview, ABC Classic FM

“An extraordinary story – there are things here that would make your hair stand on end.”

Philip Clark, ABC Radio Canberra

“The dusty file dragged from thousands stored in the archives at Kew in London seemed innocuous enough. But its contents made the hairs on author Frank Walker’s neck prickle to attention….”

‘Nuclear nightmare’, The Daily Telegraph, 30 August 2014

“This book will make you angry, and the details of the botched clean-up will make you nervous about the Abbott government’s plans to make Australia the world’s dumping ground for nuclear waste.”

“Frank Walker’s Maralinga is a highly critical account of the British testing. Walker, a veteran journalist and author, argues that the shameful neglect of the safety and wellbeing of the victims of the above-ground tests was evident not only in the poor treatment of servicemen and their families – to say nothing of the local indigenous population – but also manifested in the attitude shown towards everyone living on the Australian mainland at the time.”

The Australian

BRITISH scientists secretly used the Australian population to test for radiation contamination after the nuclear tests at Maralinga in the 1950s, a new book confirms. Its author, Frank Walker, has obtained the minutes of a top secret meeting in England where the UK Atomic Energy Research Establishment approved a program to determine the long-term effects of the tests on Australia and its citizens.

The Adelaide Advertiser

“This account, which Walker has pieced together from previously secret files and interviews with surviving veterans, sparks a rage in the reader that human beings could be treated with such contempt, such cold-blooded, Nazi like calculated evilness by a nation that, at the time, was regarded as our best friend and ally. It’s simply horrifying. Walker’s book is a well written unmasking of a dirty secret that remains a black stain on our history.”

Law Society Journal, September 2014

“This book should be on the school syllabus”

Andrew O’Keefe, Channel 7 Weekend Sunrise, 20 September

Readers' comments about Maralinga

Hi Frank, I have just finished reading your excellent book Maralinga. Thank you for writing it - I knew there were nuclear tests and that servicemen were sent into radioactive clouds, but your book really informed me about the extent of the injustice done to Australians and (to a lesser extent) British.

I consider this an essential read for every single Australian. Some books cynically try to manipulate the reader, this book's power is in letting the horrific story speak for itself. I spent every spare moment I had reading it. I'll certainly be seeking out your other work.

Christopher Lees, Perth WA

“I have read your book Maralinga through for the first time and it is a must for me to read it for a second time. Believe it or not but this is now my Bible. It is an eye-opening story, a story that just about every Australian should be made aware of, a frightening truth of what those who were at ground zero were subjected to and the aftermath”

Will Thornton, Adelaide

“Maralinga is a top read….a disgraceful saga – thank you again for the book”

Colin Smiley, Perth

"I learned so much from your book, and what I learned has really disturbed me. The denial is criminal. Menzies! Titterton! The Woomera babies. My glorious government. The disease and the deaths. All this and much more was a total surprise."

David Farnell, British nuclear veteran.

Readers' comments about The Tiger Man of Vietnam and Ghost Platoon

Frank, just a short note to thank you for your perseverance in highlighting such an injustice in the lives of Vietnam Vets. I really felt for all those involved and anger and disappointment at those who are meant to safeguard this country.

The book is being passed around with friends to better inform them of the indifference of so many people.

Again thank you!

Leon Bobako, Hawks Nest NSW

I bought your book at the airport last week and had great difficulty putting it down!

Thank you for such a well researched and well written work that commenced with the description of an action about which most of us had heard nothing.

Hugh Robertson, Melbourne, Vic.

A highly controversial book..... I will be recommending it to my peers.......a great job of telling a tough story and I am thankful that I had the opportunity to read it.

A serving army lieutenant

I'm writing this email to tell you how I really enjoyed your book. It was a great read and I agree with your views on the war.

I picked up the book at Sydney Airport and started reading it on the plane heading to South Africa. I must say I finished it within a week of my holiday as I read it every night. Keep up the great work and thank you again for the great read.

Paul P. Sydney NSW

Just finished your book, Ghost Platoon, couldn't put the damn thing down until I finished it. One of the most compelling books I've read. I had no idea the government, top brass and the AWM tried to cover up and denounce a band heroes (for taking on that many VC and fight in what they believe in) to cover their ass. It certainly opened my eyes, I think it would be wise if every viet vet read that book.

Terry French, Vietnam veteran

I just finished reading you book and want to say thank you for writing it. I am in my mid 50’s, female and never been to Viet Nam as nurse etc . I grew up in Mackay as a teen and never took part in any demos…country town people never did. You have confirmed what I suspected from my late teens; government hypocrisy, military cover up, we should never have been there.

Georgina

"Thank you for writing Ghost Platoon - such an insightful book about a subject that I seem to gravitate to reading-wise. As with your previous book on Barry Petersen, I found I couldn’t put it down once I had started reading it. It was very interesting reading about the men’s fight for recognition and what they have been through since the original battle. I hope the men find peace in their lives and understand that the majority of Australians are proud of their efforts. I am already looking forward to your next book."